Bukavu Holds Mass Funeral for 27 School-Fire Victims

Bukavu held a mass funeral for 27 victims of the September 10 fire at the Furaha and Ujamaa schools in Cimpunda, with coffins taken from the city hospital to Athénée d'Ibanda and then Ruzizi cemetery. Hundreds joined the procession, while schools, shops, transport and commercial activity were suspended through noon. Provincial officials promised tighter safety controls, protected access routes, stronger firefighting capacity and better prevention in schools. Local reports agreed that 27 people were buried, but accounts differed over how many were children; the fire's cause remains unknown.